


The great task remaining before us

by risinggreatness



Series: Circle 'round the sun [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Non-Graphic Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-14
Updated: 2014-09-14
Packaged: 2018-02-17 10:09:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2305907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/risinggreatness/pseuds/risinggreatness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ahsoka's galaxy falls apart, one unsettling revelation after another</p>
            </blockquote>





	The great task remaining before us

“What the hell did you just do?”

Ahsoka doesn’t wait for the doors to finish sliding closed. He’s standing with his back to her, staring out the window, arms crossed. It’s not an unusual stance, but today it’s not Anakin. It’s someone completely foreign: imposing and unapproachable. Terrifying, if she’s honest, but she’s too angry to be afraid. It’s the kind of anger that Master Yoda or Master Luminara advise against; the kind that Anakin often cloaks himself in as he throws himself into the heat of battle, and then promptly tells her not to try… most of the time.

If she listened to their advice, she would have left the room a lot sooner.

“I can’t believe you openly agreed with the Chancellor; dissolving the senate to consolidate war powers?! Actually, I can’t believe you agreed with the Chancellor! Giving it all to one man? This isn’t the Jedi way; this isn’t anything you’ve taught me! How is this protecting the galaxy?”

A long and deafening silence answers her outburst. When he finally turns to respond, face-to-face, his voice is toneless. Gone is the teasing; the familiar banter; the drawl that explains why exactly Obi-Wan just might be right this time, despite his insistence they stick to the rules.

“The Chancellor has a vision to end this war that will ensure order in the galaxy, and it is through empire. Not squabbling senators. Not the Jedi Council. They are not so blind that they cannot see the merit, but they are too weak to act. This is an opportunity to use the full power of the Force.”

Any other day, Ahsoka would snort derisively.

“Well, you may be happy convincing yourself that throwing your life away to Palpatine’s mission is a good idea, but what about your friends? People who care about you? Listen to me, or Padmé, or Obi-Wan!”

The same stony silence is all that answers. Suddenly she understands why Anakin ( _mentor, friend, brother, not the man standing before her_ ) allows his volatile emotions to reign when he charges, ever recklessly, forward.

“Are you stupid?! He wants to use you! You’re talking about power, but he won’t give you any! If you think you’ll be able to control people or systems, then you’re worse than whatever you think the Council is!” And in frustration, more than rage, she yells “Sith!”

The igniting lightsaber is completely unexpected.

It sounds like a death knell.

She reaches for her own primary blade, and in her reverse grip of the hilt, there’s a voice, chiding her for favoring such a dangerous stance.

They circle each other, neither daring to make the first move, but when she shifts the weight of the lightsaber in her hand, ever so slightly, he lunges. She blocks with a parry and all her practice at the Temple and fighting battle droids in the war is hopelessly inadequate.

Whatever Master Yoda says, when ones opponent has bulk, as well as years more experience with using ( _manipulating_ ) the Force, size does matter.

As he moves forward, Ahsoka rapidly steps backwards, lightsabers locked and crackling; she dreads the moment when one blade will inevitably slip. She looks desperately for an escape. She doesn’t suppose she’ll make a clear getaway through the doors, but maybe a vent or the window…

She’s projecting her feelings too clearly and loudly, because almost as soon as she thinks it, she finds herself flying across the room, not of her own volition. She’s pinned against the wall and he’s moving towards her and for a moment, she thinks this is the end.

And yet there’s something holding him back.

She concentrates with all her strength that she might be able to throw him back and gain precious seconds to escape. The strain is unbelievable and she feels like nothing’s happening and this is it; she’ll be murdered by someone who used to call her Snips, who she looked up to as the big brother she never had – until she regains control of one of her legs. He’s close just enough and – her kick lands squarely on his knee. He stumbles back and Ahsoka feels her own muscles relax. She’s free now.

She vaults herself past him. Vent or window? He’s still down. Gut says vent, and since she usually trusts her gut over her head: vent. She launches herself upwards and scrambles forward so she’s out of reach. She’s moving slowly through the tunnels; scraping and bruising her elbows and knees in the process.

It takes her a minute to realize that he’s not following her. There’s no oppressive feeling of dread weighing down on her mind, her bones, her heart.

He’s simply letting her go.

She lets out a stifled sob. There must be some trace of Anakin left, there must be. Or does whoever replaced him not think a padawan with incomplete training is worth his time?

She crawls for what feels like an hour and then stops to regain her breath and control. Who can she tell? Who will believe her? Surely by now, most will have heard General Skywalker backs Chancellor Palpatine’s resolution to dissolve the Galactic Senate in an effort to centralize the war’s management. Who does she trust now?

Her immediate answer is Obi-Wan. He’s the only one who can get Anakin to toe the line… occasionally. But last Ahsoka knew Obi-Wan is too far off; dealing with the reinforcements at Felucia.

Who is at the Jedi Temple? Master Yoda? Master Windu? All gone to fight the war when the battle is here…

Padmé. Padmé will listen. She will know what to do. She and Anakin are close ( _closer than the Council liked, but Obi-Wan never said anything_ ) and Ahsoka values her friendship and advice. She supposes it isn’t a perfect answer, but she’s rattled to her core and she can sense the Force is directing her to Padmé.

It’s too late in the evening for her to be in her office at the senate, so Ahsoka heads towards Padmé’s apartment. Every sound and shadow makes her want to jump out of her skin. Her hand is wrapped around the hilt of her lightsaber. The fact she can’t sense anyone following her makes her all the more uneasy. This isn’t normal; this isn’t right.

Anakin, Anakin, what are you doing?

\----------

3PO answers the door, “Goodness, young Ahsoka, you certainly look like to be in quite a–”

“Ahsoka! What are you doing here? Is everything alright? You look awful! 3PO, please leave us and power down.”

The adrenaline which keeps Ahsoka together is finally draining from her exhausted body. It takes everything to keep her knees from buckling out from underneath her.

“Did you hear Chancellor Palpatine’s statement?” She really hopes she doesn’t have to say, “And what Anakin said after?”

Padmé’s worried look clouds over immediately, as her mouth sets into a grim, thin line, and her brow furrows. “Yes, I heard. I will kill Anakin when I see – Ahsoka, what happened?”

“I spoke to, well, yelled at him and we fought about it. It’s like he’s gone mad, like he’s beyond reason…” Her voice trails off.

“Ahsoka, what aren’t you telling me?” Padmé’s stoops down, ever so slightly, to Ahsoka’s eye level and places hands on her shoulders. Ahsoka does not meet her eye contact.

Ahsoka feels her stomach churning and she knows she’s dangerously close to crying. She’s indulged in emotions for far too long and she desperately wishes ( _no, no she really doesn’t_ ) she’d been assigned a different master.

She takes a deep, steadying breath. “We fought about it… but I mean really fought. With lightsabers.” In the smallest voice, she finishes. “He drew first.”

Padmé shoots up, enraged. She paces back and forth, hands raised, nostrils flaring. Ahsoka has seen Padmé mad about things before, but that was it. They were things: failed legislation, botched trade negotiations, broken promises of peace, things that were to be repaired tomorrow with choice, diplomatic words. Her explosion over Ahsoka’s confession eerily sounds like Anakin. It is not the reminder she needs at present.

“He attacked you?! Oh, I knew he’d been getting too close to Palpatine! Bail and I were saying trusting Palpatine is worse than trusting a Hutt! And Anakin’s been more and more distant for the past month! We’ve barely spoken over dinner, or at all, and –” she wheels around to Ahsoka, her face flooding with desperate worry. “You have to run. Now. If he tried to kill you… you have to let Obi-Wan and the Council know and get out. Fast.”

The uncertainty and nervousness that plagued Ahsoka since her flight to Padmé’s apartment is replaced with her usual demeanor: stubbornness. Heels digging in, she will not abandon a friend, especially now that they have been brutally betrayed by another. One that had tried to kill her. What if Padmé is next?

“No, I’m staying here. Someone needs to stop him, and if it has to be us, it’s us.”

“Ahsoka, he tried to kill you! We’ve lost him to Palpatine; you need to get off Coruscant and hide –”

“And what about you?! What if he tries to do the same?! No offense, but a blaster’s not going to hold him off for long. Master Yoda or Master Windu could stop him but they’re not here right now –” Ahsoka tenses.

A shiver runs down her spine. She senses someone coming; the presence she has been anticipating all evening.

“He’s nearby.” Padmé opens her mouth to protest, but Ahsoka cuts her off, “I’m not leaving you.”

Padmé knows it is a hopeless cause. Ahsoka is just as nerfheaded as Anakin when it comes to loyalty and love. Jaw set, she grabs Ahsoka’s wrist and drags her towards the nearest door. “Stay in here. Don’t come out until Anakin’s gone; do not let him know you’re here.”

“How do you know he’ll leave? What if –”

“He’ll go.”

Padmé’s final tone silences Ahsoka’s doubts. Tonight’s been too long and too much of her world is turned upside down.

The door closes behind her. She realizes she’s in Padmé’s bedroom. It is a far more luxurious affair than Ahsoka’s own sparse quarters at the Temple. Such different lives they lead. She sits down near the door, pulls knees up to her chin and wraps her arms around her legs, making herself as small as possible.

It is an eternity before she hears the front door open. He does not knock.

“I heard you pledge your support for the Chancellor.” Padmé’s tone is inscrutable and her voice comes from nearby; she stands between him and the closed door; a small shield against something darker than they comprehend. “I don’t know what good you think will come of it.”

“Have you spoken to Ahsoka tonight?” His voice is hollow sounding. Ahsoka swears a battle droid could muster more convincing emotion.

“No, but I imagine she’s not happy with you either.”

“Her opinion of my actions is inconsequential.”

The silence that follows is deafening. Unseen to Ahsoka, clearly visible to Padmé, he clenches and unclenches his fist mechanically.

“He knows I’m here,” thinks Ahsoka. She’s too on edge to clear her mind properly. What she hears next is not what she expects.

“We’re done, Anakin. You’re not the man I married. You’ve lost sight of who you are and it’s time we go our separate ways.”

 _Married_. Ahsoka feels like she’s been hit by a speeder. They’re married. Anakin has never been one for following Council procedure, but this is flagrant defiance. Anakin and Padmé are married. She begins to feel like she never really knew him.

At Padmé’s words, Ahsoka senses something frayed within him unraveling completely.

“We’re through. Just go.”

Ahsoka braces herself for what she anticipates will be next: heated words, or worse, the hum of his lightsaber.

Neither comes.

The front door closes and she jumps up. She tentatively opens the door to peer into the main living quarters. Padmé is standing where Ahsoka expects; in a spot not too removed from the room she emerges from and some distance from the front door. She is ghostly pale. Ahsoka wants to be mad at her for hiding the truth, but she just feels tired.

Padmé notices Ahsoka’s come out of hiding and clears her throat, “You really should find some place to hide. Stay with someone you trust...”

The unspoken end of her plea is “not me, not Anakin.” Instead of the earlier frantic, worried tone, Padmé is firm.

Ahsoka feels years older.

Her plan from earlier is her sole option. Whatever the Chancellor’s tactics, the Jedi are still in charge of the troops.

Obi-Wan and the 7th Sky Corps. That’s where she’ll go. She knows she’s been betrayed too many times today, but unflappable, acerbic, by-the-book, Obi-Wan was her first solution, her safe solution.

“I’ll go to Felucia. I’ll blend in with the other Jedi, but don’t think for a second that I won’t be coming back.”

She heads for the door and pauses. She turns to face Padmé, who hasn’t moved since Ahsoka emerged from the other room. Ahsoka walks backs to her and hugs her fiercely. Padmé reciprocates her tight embrace.

“Everything will be better soon. We’ll figure something out.”

Both of them wish they could believe it.

It is the last time they see each other.

\----------

The 7th’s command headquarters looks worse for the wear compared to the last time Ahsoka saw it. The war has dragged on far too long.

From the ridge, she can make out the forms of Cody, Rex, and several other clone officers. Each one is distinguishable by their customized armor, different choice of haircut, and although civilians do not hear it, their unique voice. It takes fighting alongside them to know that.

They are in a heated argument; not uncommon, given Rex’s tendency to question orders when not told directly by a Jedi. And sometimes even then.

“I got the order from the General and we’re carrying through with it. I don’t like it any more than you do, Captain, but our foremost duty is to obey commands.”

What order; which general? Far too much is going wrong for Ahsoka to trust right now. She is constantly alert and on the defensive since Coruscant. Her perch looks down on the small cluster of men affords her cover behind some rocks; she has some measure of protection.

Has Palpatine installed a new commander for the Corps, or worse?

Obi-Wan is nowhere in sight.

Rex balks at Cody. “So we’re expected to kill Jedi – men and women who have been leading us and recognize us – without so much as a by your leave? You heard that from General Skywalker? _Really_? I guess the rumors that he’s turned into the Chancellor’s attack dog are true. Sad bastard.”

The crack of the butt of a blaster hitting Rex’s jaw echoes loudly. Although it was a harsh blow, he remains standing upright.

“Congratulations, CT-7567. You’ve earned yourself a demotion and a court martial. Orders aren’t to execute insubordinate clones, so you’ve lucked out there.”

Ahsoka isn’t standing for it anymore. She’s spent the better part of a week skirting around the edges and she is sick of hiding. Jedi are sworn to defend the peace and she can’t help her fellow soldiers very well if she’s crouched behind rocks. She runs and lightly jumps down the incline; all dexterity and ease, both lightsabers lit and ready. The clones standing outside spot her immediately and fire.

She knows there are more clones waiting in the headquarters who will follow Cody’s ( _and his_ ) orders over her own – a matter of rank. She doesn’t care anymore, at least not for her own safety. She is going to warn as many of the Jedi as she can. They will outlast this. She will trust in only herself; it’s safer.

Despite the number of blasters being fired at her, she dodges most of them with relative ease. Several scorch her bare arms; she deflects the others. They fly back and hit their originators in the face, in the chest, in the leg.

The real trouble comes when the stray blasts crash in cacophony against the valley’s wall. Rocks plummet down and although she’s avoiding the shots, one boulder manages to pin her hand. She’s sure the wrist is broken – it will be useless for a while. The smaller of her lightsabers falls to the ground – no point to retrieving it.

In a display of the Force she isn’t aware she’s even capable of, she lifts the large rock, removing the pressure, and swings it around towards the oncoming clones.

Many of them are knocked down; others step out of the way to avoid being hit. She uses the opportunity to dart past them. She has no interest in killing men she once commanded, but she will stop at nothing to ensure no more Jedi are tricked by Palpatine ( _by Anakin_ ) and slaughtered on his orders.

She may very well die trying.

\----------

Obi-Wan arrives at the former headquarters of the 7th only a few hours after Ahsoka. Who told her that he was here only days ago? After Padmé came to the Temple and told him everything that transpired: Anakin, Palpatine, the Dark Side, there wasn’t time to run after the padawan who fled the planet.

He knows he made the right decision, for the greater good, but he will regret not coming for her sooner for the rest of his life.

It is the rumors of what the Chancellor, now self-styled Emperor, and his faithful servant, now anointed Darth Vader, plan next, which has the remaining Jedi masters scattering to the winds. They are warning the others to defend themselves; tacitly reminding them to protect the defenseless.

He sees one of her lightsabers mixed with the rubble that used to be the military facility and the corpses of clones and more guilt and anguish fills his chest. He swallows his grief. Her body is nowhere to be found, but a Jedi who’s lost a blade is usually lost themselves.

Anakin, Anakin, what have you done?

\----------

She’s thinking about heading to Kashyyyk. There may be the odd Jedi there who sought wookiee support during the war. They’ll need to know. She might have a friend there.

She finally takes the bandage off her wrist. It’s stiff from disuse, but she’ll get used to it.

There’s a rumor running around the system about a terrible battle on Mustafar that may have ended the war.

There were two casualties: Sith Lord Darth Vader and Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Lord Vader came away worse for the wear. They say he lives, but now needs a suit of steel to keep on living. She supposes it would be easier damaging the suit than the corpse inside.

Master Kenobi vanished into thin air. Good as dead to whatever hopeless cause is left.

The war is over, but she still has a mission she must see through.

Vader and Kenobi taught Ahsoka Tano her lesson in detachment.

**Author's Note:**

> See author bio for discussion on this 'verse.


End file.
